Defamilialization of Childcare,Commodification of Mothers,and Poverty： Recognition of New Social Risks in Korea

This study analyzed the relationship between new social risks and poverty in Korea, with specific foci on the changes in the family and in the labor market. Through the analysis, this study maintains that the expanding welfare state in Korea requires policies responding both to NSRs （new social risks） and to traditional social risks. The findings of this study are as follows： First, care responsibilities within the household were strongly associated with the poverty status of household. Second, dual-breadwinner households were less likely to fall into poverty than households with a single male breadwinner. Third, the flexible labor market that leads to poverty not only influences irregular or part-time workers but regular workers as well. These findings show that households of self-employed workers were even worse off than those of irregular workers, who were previously identified as the group who suffered most due to the flexible labor market.     

Financial Recession and the Wages of the Czech Employees by Educational Attainment

The present paper deals with the development of wage distribution by educational attainment in the Czech Republic in the years of 2003-2012, analyzing 50 wage distributions as the object of research and the gross monthly wage in CZK （Czech Koruna） as the research variable. It examines the development of wage distribution in time and the gross monthly wage in relation to the level of educational attainment. It also pursues the development of the minimum wage in the monitored period. The author pays special attention to the lowest guaranteed wage levels classified according to wage classes and work capability assessment, comparing the minimum wage with the wage of subsistence. The forecasts of future wage distribution are an integral component of the research. Comparison of wage levels in the world and the position of wages of the Czech employees in the international context are included, too.     

The Relationship Between High Education and Labor Market in Western Balkan Countries

This paper deals with the relationship between high education and labor market in Western Balkan countries. Having in mind that all these countries are in transitional process, suffering from poor economics, poor level of investments, and high unemployment rates, it would be wise that the governments and political elites put the quality of knowledge high on agenda, regarding it as the vital incentive instrument for economic and social development. All social and political subjects should be devoted to procuring good quality of knowledge, which is sensitive to the labor market＇s needs in all fields. This study attempts to find answer on the question why it is not so, making qualitative, quantitative, and empirical research. It analyzes the relationship between high education and labor market＇s needs, identifies main factors which influence this relationship, focusing on main influence of political interests and values. The paper presents rare good cases, as lessons from experience for the future.     

The equalization pattern and process of gender educational inequality in Taiwan： Some evidence for the threshold hypothesis

The existing literature on women＇s educational attainments and gender inequality in education excludes the pattern and process of gender educational equalization. In this research, we review the relevant literature first and then set hypotheses to be tested based on the different expectations of modernization theory and the threshold hypothesis. We have access to the 1990-2001 data files of the Taiwan social change survey and the 1950-2000 data files of the Statistical abstract of national income in Taiwan to obtain the information which is used in this research. We employ the bi-variate logistic regression model to estimate the net effect of gender on the likelihood that the subject completes his or her high school education or earns a degree from a college or a university from 1950 to 2000. Our empirical results show that, when compared with the educational attainments of men, the women＇s relative disadvantage in terms of educational attainment diminishes with economic development, but the extent of such a decline varies with the different levels of economic development and stages of educational expansion. This indicates that the equalization pattern of gender inequality in education is not linear, but rather ladder-like, and is consistent with the assumption of the threshold hypothesis. Furthermore, the equalization process of gender educational inequality differs according to socio-economic backgrounds. A boy with an upper class background is more likely to complete his high school education or obtain a degree from a college or a university than a girl with an upper class background, followed by a lower class male, and a lower class female, respectively.     

The Ambivalent Character of Reconstruction： Winners and Losers of the Lobito Transport Development Corridor

In Angola where poor and scattered communities extend over great distances, an efficient transport system is very important. Nevertheless, in the post-war context its reconstruction has an ambivalent character. On the one hand, it is an indispensable part of the process of economic reconstruction and development where it is possible to identify complementary linkages influencing the dynamics of road and railway reconstruction that can reduce poverty. On the other hand, the post-war transport economy, like the war transport economy, is a site of private accumulation and change where social stratification goes in parallel with increased socio-economic inequality and unfavourable conditions in the labour transport market. The infrastructural reconstruction process is not fulfilling its potential for generating domestic linkages or multiplier effects through wage employment of Angolans. The creation of employment and other income earning opportunities have been limited, meaning that communities might lack the financial capacity to make use of the transport network. The ambivalent character of the modernisation of the transport system was already a feature in the first half of the 20th century as the transport network＇s creation of regional and national spaces with new centres and peripheries established a new hierarchy of social groups and gave rise to significant cultural changes. The effects of roads, railways, and other new means of transport were experienced in very different ways by different actors （means of wealth as well as poverty; inroads of repression as well as paths to personal liberation; and as tools of fragmentation as well as of unification）.     

Infant and child mortality in Sudan： Case of central region

This paper uses households＇ data from central region of Sudan to examine factors that affect infant and child mortality. The education of mother and father, community variables and household income per adult are used. For this purpose, a household survey was conducted to collect data on the variables of interest from a random sample withdrawn from the study population. 600 questionnaires were distributed to households in one province of the region （out of five） where there are seven localities. The data has been analyzed using different statistical and econometric methods, including ordinary least squares method. The ordinary least squares found that child mortality is inversely associated with household income per adult, community variables and parental education. The effect of mother＇s education is more significant than father＇s education, mother＇s age is also found to be the most important factor that influences child mortality.     

Recent trends in the European Union trade and investment policy towards China

The last decades＇ trend towards the creation of a world market of goods and services and the upsurge of China as a global competitor ought to be considered as an important challenge for the European Union. In contrast to this interpretation, the European Union policy towards China has suffered from an absence from a long run view. European institutional behaviour has been based on applying measures that were solely reactions to the policies launched by the United States. Finally, the difficulty of finding common interests among all member countries has been a constant in the relationship with China. The European Union has recently shown a clear concern about the unavoidable need of improving European firms＇ competitiveness, especially in order to overcome the Chinese access to the internationalised division of labour. Nevertheless, it is still difficult to observe a thorough treatment for the economic challenge of emergent economies as a whole in many European policy measures.     

Research on the Relationship Among Income,Education, and Rising Medical Expenditure in Shanghai

Based on the statistics coming from the China Statistical Yearbook and the Shanghai Statistical Yearbook from 1978 to 2011, the authors exploit the internal relationships of the three variables of income, education, and medical expenses by constructing the model of vector autoregressive model （VAR）. The results show that the income elasticity of medical expenses is negative. There are inverse relationship between rising medical expenses and income, in the long term, more medical expenses mean bad health and get less income, meanwhile the education elasticity of medical expenses is 0.15, indicating that education has positively but slowly correlated with growth of medical expenses. Rising medical expenses on income changes, there is a long-term impact of income on medical expenses, the increase in revenue to stimulate healthy demand, driven by rising health care costs, indicates that after the market-oriented health care reform, health care commodities are flexible.     

Organized independent labor movement in Taiwan： The case of the CTWU

Labor was a significant factor in Taiwanese politics. In history, some of the most important unions in Taiwan were built around a core of members resolutely loyal to a political ideology. However, with time many tenets of labor and political history have undergone a change. The alliances between trade unions broke the links with their respective political parties or groups. The centralized and traditional union structures fell short of workers＇ expectation amid the mounting pressures of political democratization in Taiwan, thereby giving way to ＂independent＂ union bodies. This paper examines the experiences of＂independent＂ trade unions in Taiwan in a historical context and attempts to trace the conditions that are instrumental in the growth of such unions. The case of one ＂independent＂ union in Taiwan--the Chunghwa Telecom Workers＇ Union （CTWU） depicts the ways and means by which independent rank-and-file led unions have proven their collective strength time and again. The case analysis in the present paper suggests that the continuing economic liberalization in Taiwan may bring about the proliferation of ＂independent＂ unions with far greater collective voice and less monopoly effects than the current situation.     

Client Orientation as a Form of Spiritual Needs of Personnel in Labor

The paper considers some grounds of the inside organization marketing concept as a management system that is aimed at meeting the needs of the company＇s personnel in labor. These needs are based on three levels [physiological （highest）, social （middle）, and spiritual （lowest）] and each level has its own revolutionizing forms of the development of needs in labor （abstract, wants, and demand）. Having analyzed a great deal of research materials concerning employees＇ motivation at Russian enterprises, a native higher educational establishment Ural Federal University named after the first President of Russia B. N. Yeltsin was one of them, it can be concluded that this research does not reflect an estimation degree of meeting employees＇ needs in labor. Moreover, there is no motivation of client orientation in them that is considered as a form of spiritual needs of employees in labor. The essence of this form is determined by some objective and subjective factors.     

China＇s Political Stability and Comprehensive National Power： A Case Study of the Conflict in Xinjiang

The concept of comprehensive national power （CNP） is proposed and developed by several Chinese scholars and academic institutions. Many material capabilities, for example, economic growth and military might, are incorporated into the concept to measure China＇s national power vis-h-vis other major powers, especially the U.S. This paper, however, contends that understanding China＇s CNP through material capabilities is only part of the story. Yet, China＇s political stability is by no means assured and fully incorporated into the concept. China has undoubtedly faced many threats and challenges to its political stability. Apart from the Two Ts＇ problem （Taiwan and Tibet）, the conflict in Xinjiang not only threatens China＇s political stability since the establishment of the People＇s Republic of China （PRC） in 1949, but also affects its CNP as a whole. This paper concludes that measuring the genuine CNP should be based on the factors from which a country would earn or benefit, and also on those of which it would have to pay a price. Needless to say, the conflict and political instability in Xinjiang are an example of the price which China has to pay.     

A road to institutionalization： China＇s corruption and struggle for political reform

This essay is a study of China＇s political corruption and countermeasure for it. The author will focus on the cultural factors and the incompleteness of the market economy because these show us the reason why the corruption became severe after the initiation of the economic reform. The author will move on to search a solution within the field of political reform. The author will deal with the problem by two approaches. The first one is to focus on the democratization and the second one is to focus on the political institutionalization. The goal of the author＇s analysis is to examine which approach will work as a proper solution. The author＇s argument is that institutionalization will be the better one. The author will outline the grounds briefly. Firstly, unlike democratization, this solution shows possibility of realization. Secondly, political institutionalization has its own value of political development which was not considered sufficiently before. And finally there are advantages of strengthened accountability and limit discretion. To consolidate the author＇s argument the author will use Hong Kong＇s case where have been successfully controlled the problem by political institutionalization.     

The idea of the legal regulation of war and its origin

The subject matter of the analysis in this paper is jus in bello and the very possibility of its existence. On the face of it, the concept that in the event of the outbreak of hostilities, the use of force against one＇s opponent should be somehow regulated and limited, which is stranger, and its origin is more difficult to explain, than the concept that human societies should live together in peace or that wars should only be begun on some ethical or legally acceptable grounds. It is likely that limits on the use of force, or at least pressures to keep it within a ritualized framework, are property of human beings that enabled our ancestors to live together as social animals. Something similar would have been applied for groups of such beings. Even though the tendency to regulate the use of force in war has existed in the earliest times, this is not a simple task and sets against this effort there are a number of factors that encourage the freest use of violent methods and weapons： The war is a serious business and the desire to win at all costs is very strong, the logic of war leads the combatants to employ all the forces that can be freed from elsewhere and make use of all available advantages and means, a combat is an emotional mater not only rational, etc. Against these forces, the factors that work in favor of the legal regulation of the use of force are： The existence of at least a basic common identity, a situation in which war does not have the characteristics of total war, ear of reprisals by the enemy, the principle of proportion of force used to the objectives, the existence of an approximately comparable moral code and warrior code of honor on both sides, and the need to legitimize war. The extent to which a given war will abide by legal regulation of the use of force depends on the result of the balance of the opposing factors listed above.     

Media influences and effects on experiences of uncertainty and fear in urban public spaces

From the point of a normative idea of equality, all citizens are entitled to equal access to the cities public spaces. In the public debate, the media have often been blamed for contributing to people＇s fear and insecurity and the avoidance of public places, especially after dark. In this paper, the author addresses the question of how and to what extent experiences of risk and threats in the media, perceptions of crime coverage in the media and third-person-effects of risk and threats influence the degree of avoidance of public places and the variation in people＇s experiences of the sensation of feeling fear and insecurity in public places. The main results presented here are primarily based on survey data from a well known regional survey （Western SOM） performed in 2001-2007 on approximately 3,000 inhabitants in the local region of Gothenburg, Sweden. Experiences of risk and threats through the media are of minor importance for the independent effect on the experiences of the sensation of feeling fear and insecurity in public spaces. The main role of the media is through the perceptions the respondents have on media coverage on crime and media influence on their own and others experiences of threats and risks. Those that believe that media coverage on crime is understated have to a greater extent avoided public places and experienced the sensation of feeling fear and insecurity than those that believe that media coverage of crime is coherent with reality or overstated. The third-person-effects that occur also have consequences. Those that believe that media influence experiences of threats and risks have to a greater extent experienced the sensation of feeling fear and insecurity than those that don＇t believe in media influence （on both others and themselves）. The main conclusion presented in this paper is that the avoidance of public places and variation in people＇s experiences of the sensation of feeling fear and insecurity in public places is more related to people＇s perceptions of media content and media influence regarding risk and threats than experiences of risk and threats through the media. This, however, doesn＇t mean that the experience of risk and threats through the media doesn＇t matter. Experience of risk and threats through the media matters, but do so through reinforcing personal and social experiences of risk and threats.     

Farm to Non-Farm Employment Linkages and Pattern： An Analysis of Village Level Survey in Bangladesh

The widening of rural-urban continuum has accelerated the transformation of Bangladesh agriculture from subsistence toward commercialization. This has accompanied significant employment linkages and patterns in farm and non-farm sector. Modern rice production contributed to employment generation through backward and forward linkages. The field study of three villages measures farm to non-farm employment linkages for two major rice crops. The estimated backward, forward, and total linkages were 0.18, 0.43, and 0.61 for Boro rice and 0.14, 0.39, and 0.53 for Aman rice. For two crops as a whole, farm to non-farm total employment linkage coefficient was 0.58, which meant that total 100 man days of farm employment per hectare in farm production activities generated 58 man days of non-farm employment in various support services, processing, and marketing activities. Employment pattern in different months was more flexible for the farm workers than for non-farm workers. The availability of farm employment in a month varied from five to 25 days for farm workers, and from 22 to 27 days for non-farm workers. The findings imply that more investrnent in rice-based production system significantly increases non-farm employment opportunities. From national policy perspective, more research and development efforts should go into accelerating potential rural growth and non-farm sector development.     

A game-theoretic model of the participants in the rural migrant workers＇ work-related injury insurance system

According to the game theory, the efficiency of a policy depends on the coherence between the Nash equilibrium and policy maker＇s ideal focal point. A game-theoretic model is used to study the relationships among rural migrant workers, enterprises and governments under the policy that rural migrant workers were requested included in urban social insurance system. As each participant seeks to maximize his utility, the problem can best be analyzed as an n-person cooperative game. This paper tries to relocate the roles of governments, and put forward some policy suggestion on promoting rural migrant workers＇ work-related injury insurances system with effective incentive and restrictive mechanisms.     

Strengthening intergovernmental relations for improved service delivery in South Africa： Issues for consideration

Fifteen years after South Africa＇s first democratic elections in 1994, a significant percentage of the population is yet to access basic services and infrastructure because of government＇s slow pace of service delivery. Following the recent elections in April 2009, various forums have placed the debate on good governance and issues of service delivery high on their agendas. This has led to an increasing call for the present government to speed up service delivery and improve the living standards of majority of the people of South Africa. In this regard, government must seriously consider all mechanisms that have hindered delivery and other issues （that have contributed to government＇s slow delivery pace） must be revisited. Amongst other challenges is the issue of managing intergovernmental relations （IGR） in a more effective and efficient manner. The paper reconsidered the extent to which IGR could be maximised as a facilitative element in governance and argued that what needed to be earnestly pursued are integrated and improved administrative processes, as well as coordinated and aligned governmental systems. This paper therefore sought to position IGR as a possible opportunity for the improvement of service delivery＇. It further reflected on some of the pertinent challenges that impact on IGR, as well as presented some pointers for the future.     

Unemployment in transition countries： Albanian case

In this paper, the topic how the unemployment rate is changing year after year in Albania will be treated. Nearly 20 years of transition is a long period and seeing changes in the affect of the flow of foreign direct investment （FDI） on the unemployment rate. As a result of numerous changes, people migrate from other districts of the capital, investment concentrates in some areas that cause different development from one area to another. Other which highlights problems is the fact that a part of the unemployed are unregistered. Most of the data are presented only to unemployed individuals living in Tirana. However, the number of the unemployed has increased uniformly, while the number of the unemployed treated with economic assistance and payment of unemployment has reduced, because the state through the Office of the Employment Promotion employed persons in this category Although we say that year after year employed individuals who are able to work should not forget that every year new graduates are added to the labor market and again unemployment remains a problem in our society, causing a series of problems. The unacceptable reality is directly affecting people＇s physical, psychological, moral and spiritual health, not only the unemployed but also every citizen in Albania. This social pathology is named unemployment, and we wish that their values are going to change soon.     

The new U.S.-China rapprochement： A view from Africa

The U.S. and China recently held a ＂dialogue＂ at the behest of policy makers in Washington for the mutual benefit of their governments and people and ostensibly the rest of humanity as well. Coming at a time of increasing quest for natural resources by many countries including China and Chinese obviously bourgeoning influence in Africa, that Washington decided to engage Beijing certainly, not only betrays U.S. apprehension over the emergence of a strong competitor for Africa＇s resources but also an attempt to whittle down China＇s growing international stature especially on the African continent. While the Chinese will not likely succumb to the U.S., this new found rapprochement between the two will certainly intensify the resource scramble in Africa. Whether the ＂severe＂ interest for African resources will benefit the continent or not depends on how African countries are able to manage the ensuing resource race between the U.S. and China.